Friday, May 2, 2014

Tate and his father don’t exactly get along. As Tate sees it, his father has unreasonably high expectations for Tate to be the best—at everything. Tate finally learns what he’s being prepared for when he steals one of his dad’s odd tech inventions and mercenaries ambush the school, killing his father in the process and sending Tate on the run from aliens who look just like humans.All Tate knows--like how to make weapons out of oranges and lighter fluid--may not be enough to save him as he’s plunged into a secret inter-species conflict that’s been going on for centuries. Aided only by his girlfriend and his estranged mother, with powerful enemies closing in on all sides, Tate races to puzzle out the secret behind his father’s invention and why so many are willing to kill for it. A riveting, fast-paced adventure, Scan is a clever alien thriller with muscle and heart.

With your career in film, did you always know you
wanted to be a writer yourself?

No, writing is something that I
came upon quite late. My goal has always been to be a great storyteller--in
particular, in the filmmaking arena as a producer. But because of all of
the time I've spent thinking through story and storytelling issues, as well as
problem-solving, actually putting pen to paper is something that came easier to
me. Reminds me of Malcolm Gladwell's OUTLIERS--the significant amount of
hours that I've spent honing my story skills in the film arena, provided me the
perfect foundation for writing.

How long did it take you and Sarah Fine to write SCAN
from start to finish?

It took about six weeks to hone in
on the story skeleton from the idea stage to complete outline including one set
of revisions. Then it took another six months to work through a very rough
draft. Both Sarah and I write fairly fast and try to get our ideas and
complete story on paper in order to efficiently work through all the kinks and
details. I like to call it a "vomit draft", as something you
just hurl out of your system as a first draft. From there, there is a lot
of dedicated rewrites and nipping and tucking. It's a long but rewarding
process especially when you have the agents and editors that we have in our
corner.

What was the hardest thing for you about writing a
book?

Without question, my toughest
moments are trying to (a) work through a mythology and (b) stay true to that
mythology while keeping characters true to their journey and motivations.
Sometimes it's tough to not write the idealized version of how I would
want to live my life and learn from my own mistakes. But you always have to
remind yourself that these characters have their own story, their own history,
their own limited and unlimited life experiences. That is what sometimes
makes it very difficult.

How did you come up with the
themes for SCAN?

Childhood
relations with parents are definitely something I have thought about a lot in
my life.Personally, I feel like I
had two different childhoods—one from when my parents were together and another
after their divorce.I’m always interested
in exploring themes around how parents disperse information to their children
or a lack of dispersion.Our story
in SCAN hinges on whether Tate’s father trusted him to tell him information and
the consequences of those decisions.Because there is no black and white rule in this area, that grey area is
always fascinating for me to explore as a theme.

Do you have a schedule
of when and where you write?

I personally love to write during
the day and on airplanes. My main criteria is not so much about where, but instead about shutting off
the internet and other social media distractions in order to be able to focus
on the task at hand. It's also why I like the Macbook Air :-)

How are you able to balance other aspects of your
life, personally and professionally with such a busy film career, with your
writing?

For me, balance is all about
setting small daily goals and accomplishing those by writing them down and
crossing them off as they are completed. There is a saying, "Take
care of thy pennies and thy dollars shall take care of themselves."
I believe this whole-heartedly. If I have film production duties,
client management duties, and writing duties, I can balance and accomplish them
all by ensuring that I am organized, understand my daily responsibilities,
create a thorough checklist, and work through all of those duties on a
consistent basis. The key is staying disciplined and getting each task
done, knowing that every task gets me one step closer to an ultimate goal.
Discipline is key!

What elements do you think make a great story line?

To me, overcoming great adversity
and having the will to move on and win and be victorious--those are elements of
every story that attract me. It's not always about success in those
situations and/or the actual ability to tackle one's challenges that make the
story, as opposed to the journey and the decision-making that we experience
through the eyes of a story's characters. I think of a film that I loved
last year, INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS, [SEMI-SPOILER ALERT] where our protagonist
didn't actually overcome his demons and win any significant victories at the
end of his journey. But it was experiencing that journey through his eyes
and seeing his struggles and his reactions to adversity that made not only a
great film, but an incredible story experience for the audience.

Do you have a favorite character in SCAN?

I love Tate. This is his
journey. He faces the ultimate moments of discipline, sadness, and
adversity--he is run through a virtual gauntlet of experiences. It is
intense to see him battle and fight through the obstacles that are laid in
front of him--and he has a very Steve McQueen-esque heart of gold under an
exterior of toughness that we get to learn about and love.

What kinds of things do you like to do outside of
writing and producing?

I love being a father and a family
man. I have an amazing wife and two young boys--2 years old and four
months. It is my great joy to spend time with them. My hobbies also
include watching Rafa Nadal, the great tennis player. I've seen him play in
Paris and New York up close in major tournaments, which have been some of the
most memorable sporting events I've ever attended. Traveling and spending
time relaxing with family and friends over great food and drinks is also one of
my favorite past-times. I love the South of France, and other exotic
European locales.

What advice would you give to someone who wants to
start writing?

To aspiring writers, the main
advice I would give is to surround yourself with people who truly have the
expertise to provide you feedback on your work. It's great that a friend
or family member will give you a thumbs up, but to attain the highest levels of
achievement in the brutally competitive industries of professional writing,
whether it's book publishing, screenwriting, journalism or the like, it is
paramount to be surrounded by people whose daily living is to judge and shape
the merits of great writing. There is no substitute for receiving
feedback from the top experts in your field of choice. Any other advice
or feedback is simply not going to cut it and will not help you.

Do you have an author that inspired/inspires you to
write?

John Steinbeck. Michael
Lewis. Too many young adult authors to name. I am just inspired by
truly great story-telling. It is so much fun to get lost in a wonderful
story. I remember the first time I read THE HUNGER GAMES—I got so lost in
the story while I was out in the sun that I got one of the worst sunburns in
history. That type of writing truly inspires me and makes me grateful to
love books!